A Study of Acts: Fulfulling the Great Commision

Chapter Five: Of Hypocrisy and The Word

Introduction: So far in our study of Acts it may seem that the "good guys" always win. We have seen blessings showered upon the Apostles and the new converts to Christ. We have witnessed courage overcome tyranny when Peter and John stood before the Sanhedrin. We have been impressed and even a little amazed by the faith and devotion of these early Christians to the doctrine of Jesus Christ. In our study of the fifth chapter, however, we will find that the first congregation of the Lord’s Church had its share of troubles, and hopefully we can learn by observing how they dealt with their problems.

Continuing from where we left off in chapter four, we see a congregation that is full of love and giving. Everyone’s needs, both physical and spiritual, are seen to, and in spite of some adversity from the outside we see a group of Christians perfectly united in the Spirit. As an example of the type of selflessness exhibited by the Jerusalem church, Luke tells us about Barnabas. While we do not know if Barnabas gave more or less than any of the others, we do know that he is offered as a genuine example of one who used his gifts from God to lift up and encourage his brothers and sisters in Christ. And we know that the apostles took special note of him for they called him "Son of Encouragement (Acts 4:36)."

Yes, Barnabas was the genuine article, full of the spiritual gifts of giving and encouragement and a valued member of the Jerusalem church. He is an example to us as he surly was to his brothers and sisters in Jerusalem. But just as is true in the Church today, not all of his brothers and sisters were as genuine as he was. Ananias and Sapphira were counterfeits. We might even call them hypocrites. Their story is as old as the human family, for just as Cain sought the same acceptance shown to his brother, Ananias and Sapphira must also have sought acceptance and recognition through their offering. However, like Cain, their offering was not acceptable to God. It was not acceptable, not because of its size or value, but because it was a lie. Also like Cain they should have heeded God’s words, "If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin lies at the door. And its desire is for you, but you should rule over it (Genesis 4:7)." They did not rule over it though. They were consumed and filled with it (Acts 5:3), and as a result they suffered separation from God.

Now, before we go searching for the counterfeits among us, we too need to learn a lesson from the Spirit. You see, it was God who knew the heart of Cain. It was God who found Cain’s offering unacceptable. It was God who knew the hearts of Ananias and Sapphira, and it was God who found their offering to be offensive. The lesson here is that the sin of hypocrisy is a sin against God, not a sin against man (Acts 5:4). And while inspiration of the Spirit enabled Peter to know about this hypocrisy, does the Spirit give us today that same insight into the motives of our brothers and sisters? We must be very careful and prayerful when accusing members of our Church family of hypocrisy. There is a difference between hypocrisy and weakness. David was weak when he stole another man’s wife. Peter was weak when he denied his Lord. And when your brother sings praises to the name of God on Sunday and uses God’s name in a curse on Monday, how can you know if that is hypocrisy or weakness? You can’t. Only God and your brother know what is in your brother’s heart. Only God and you know what is in your heart. You see, this is not a lesson that gives us leave to seek out hypocrisy in our brothers and sisters, but rather a lesson that warns us to beware of hypocrisy in our own lives. This is a lesson that warns us to beware of lies we tell to God.

Though we can only suppose that Ananias and Sapphira were motivated by jealousy and envy, no such supposing is required as our attention is turned to the Sanhedrin in verse seventeen. In verses twelve through sixteen the Spirit tells us of the "miraculous signs and wonders" performed by the apostles. We are told how "more and more men and women believed in the Lord" as a result. As we see people flocking around the apostles, bringing them the sick and demon possessed, we can’t help but remember the ministry of Jesus and how he attracted these same people and for the same reasons. And we can’t help but remember that Jesus said, "Remember the word that I said unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord. If they have persecuted me, they will also persecute you; if they have kept my saying, they will keep yours also. But all these things will they do unto you for my name's sake, because they know not him that sent me (John 15:20-21)." So it should come as no surprise to us when we see the reaction of the Sadducees in the Sanhedrin. They reacted the same way to Christ. The Sadducees were motivated by jealousy when they arrested Jesus and they acted out of the same motivation when they arrested the apostles.

The apostles, like Jesus, had a higher power on their side, for the same power that raised Jesus from the grave (Matt. 28:2) released the apostles from their jail cells. And just as an angel of the Lord instructed the women at Christ’s tomb to go tell the apostles the good news about Jesus resurrection (Matt. 28:7), the apostles were now instructed to go tell the good news to the people in the temple (Acts 5:19-21). Even after being recaptured and brought before the full council, the apostles continued to speak the word boldly. In the face of the council’s hypocrisy when they tried to deny their part in the murder of Jesus (compare Acts 5:28 with Matthew 27:24-25), Peter said, "We must obey God rather than men! The God of our fathers raised Jesus from the dead-- whom you had killed by hanging him on a tree. God exalted him to his own right hand as Prince and Savior that he might give repentance and forgiveness of sins to Israel. We are witnesses of these things, and so is the Holy Spirit, whom God has given to those who obey him (Acts 5:29-32)."

We should not be surprised today when people laugh at us, ridicule us or even throw us in jail for living our faith. They reacted the same way to Christ. They reacted the same way to the apostles. Following the example of the apostles, we too must "Go, stand in the temple courts … and tell the people of the full message of this new life (Acts 5:20)."

One last lesson from chapter five. The Spirit of God can use whomever He wishes to use as a spokesperson. In our squabbles of today we seem to have forgotten this. At times we are even guilty of rejecting a doctrinally sound teaching on the basis that it is taught by someone with whom we disagree. With this attitude in our hearts, how can we claim to speak where the Bible speaks and to be silent where the Bible is silent? Whether we are motivated by fear, envy or jealousy (sound familiar?), we deny the truth of the Spirit because we didn’t speak it. This my brothers and sisters is just plain foolishness.

In chapter five of Acts, God used one of the Sanhedrin’s own to speak on His behalf. Gamaliel stood up in the assembly of the council and delivered this message, "I advise you: Leave these men alone! Let them go! For if their purpose or activity is of human origin, it will fail. But if it is from God, you will not be able to stop these men; you will only find yourselves fighting against God (Acts 5:38-39)." Taking his advice the council released the apostles, but not till after having them flogged and ordering them not to speak in the name of Jesus (verse 40). Except for a later reference to Gamaliel as Paul’s teacher, this is the last we hear of him. In Acts 6:7 though we are told "The number of disciples in Jerusalem increased rapidly, and a large number of priests became obedient to the faith." We can only hope that the wisdom of Gamaliel’s words were not lost on himself, and that he was among those who were obedient.

In these first five chapters we have witnessed the first few weeks of the Church in Jerusalem. We have witnessed many wonders and been given many examples to follow. True to Jesus’ parting instructions, the apostles have been his witnesses in Jerusalem. In the balance of the book of Acts we will follow the progress of the Church as the apostles continue to witness "in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8)." The Spirit concludes chapter five with these words, " The apostles left the Sanhedrin, rejoicing because they had been counted worthy of suffering disgrace for the Name. Day after day, in the temple courts and from house to house, they never stopped teaching and proclaiming the good news that Jesus is the Christ (Acts 5:41-42)."

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A Study of Acts:

Fulfilling the Great Commission